Do Good(er)

"If you haven't got any charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble."
Bob Hope

Many years ago, I wasn't really the most charitable person around. Perhaps my biggest problem at the time was my inability to get any ends to meet so I spent most of my time just trying to keep a roof over my head and tummies full. Times changed and so did fortunes. More importantly, so did my awareness of the needs of others.

It could have been my youngest child's disabilities that opened my eyes. I've often thought that if nothing else, she has taught me humility. This is not to be confused with humiliation. Living with Miss Rachie has given me many life lessons and the first starts with being humble. An awareness if you will, of my own importance in the larger scheme of family and community life. Her needs were first and foremost for every single member of my family.

It's taken me years to come to the realization that although we have it tough, thousands more are much worse off than us. I've only to take a stroll through Rachel's school to see the truth of this. Kids abound who are more impaired than my own whether it's from a physical, mental or combined impairment. My own child can feed herself and walk. She isn't dependent on a ventilator or tube feedings. I'm thankful each and every day for what we DO have. I'm quite certain that many parents of kids at Rachel's school would give anything to achieve the level of function that Rachel has.

I'm one hundred percent certain that these are the lessons that have molded me into the do-gooder I've become. I will be anyone's champion. Do you have a cause? Just ask and I'll help you raise money for it. At the very least, I'll contribute my time and creativity for raising awareness and funds. I've done it many times for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. I've done it for Katrina and other disaster victims, an all girls Catholic school in Southwest Detroit, the homeless, impoverished military families and Autism awareness.

Now, I'll be doing it for moms who've suffered infant loss. If you'd like to do this too, you can.

There is a group on Ravelry called Wrapped in Care that was started by Susan Rainey (yes, one of the Rainey sisters who knit so well.) If you don't belong to Rav, you can visit The Rainey Sisters blog to enlist in this worthy cause. I know that this hospital is not in my neighborhood, but this cause is in my community of fellow mothers. Believe me when I tell you, I'd rather have my Rachel with her abundance of "issues" any day than leave a hospital empty handed and brokenhearted.

Shawls that are knit or crocheted and donated will be used to wrap the infant in for photographs and given to their mothers as a keepsake. This is not macabre in any way but is something tangible to hold on to for life. It's something to show that for just a bit of time, they did have this precious little human in their lives.

Don't click on that last link unless you have an abundance of hankies nearby.